Saturday, November 29, 2008

Meema and Grandpa treated Kya & Autumn to an afternoon at the horse farm that Joel & Hope frequent. After Joel and Hope rode the full size horses, the owners saddled up the little guys for my girls. Kya was timid until Dad was at her side and Autumn was ready to go from the moment she arrived. They LOVED it and can't wait to go again. It was a sweet day for everyone. Thank you Meema and Grandpa!

Friday, November 28, 2008

Black Friday does not exist at the little mall in the small town my mother lives in, thankfully. We were able to see Santa and get pictures taken for only $5. The babies did not like Santa or Mrs Clause one bit. The girls were very happy to see him this year though.

Thursday, November 27, 2008

We had a nice Thanksgiving at my mom's house. The 6 kids all played for days on it together. As usual, we all ate way too much but the food was all exceptionally good this year. Here are my favorite photos from Turkey Day.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Monday, November 24, 2008

Kya's Family Birthday Party was on her actual birthday. We celebrated at home, with just the six of us. It was a quiet day. She wanted French Toast for lunch which she made with dad and then pizza for dinner and apple crisp for dessert.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

She's 5!!!!! It's been so much fun to watch her grow. It's been like a little divot in time....moments you can't get back, the sound of the voice changes, the size of the hands and feet are never that small again, the conversations get more sophisticated and each moment is a small piece of time, a piece of history, you can't retrieve. It's my hope that somehow I can sit down with my journals and a photo album one day and be able to mentally transport myself back to this time, when they are all so small and be able to relive it for just a moment.

At this time in her life, Kya is into Hannah Montana. "Life's what you make it, so let's make it rock." That is what we hear around our house all day long and that seems to be the philosophy that Kya is living by right now too. She's always singing, dancing, skating, swimming, creating art and chasing her baby brother and baby sister around the house. She's full of life, full of joy. This year she chose to celebrate her birthday at Chuck E Cheese...a place I dreaded going but ended up, surprisingly, having loads of fun. I love how my children teach me to be a kid again!

Saturday, November 8, 2008

November 8, 2004.....our world changed that day 4 years ago in a hotel room in Sichuan China. A little tiny baby girl, just 11 months old was forever placed in our arms and I became a first time mom. It was and has been everything, everything I hoped motherhood to be. Thank you Jesus for this child and the next 3 that followed. Thank you Jesus for the gift and miracle of adoption!

A tiny princess, a child of God, given to us for just a while.

What a privilege it's been to watch you grow. To celebrate each year, the fact our Lord blessed us with you.

~photos: Kya with the turtle cheese cake we made together and showing off her new watch

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Roasted pumpkins seeds and all. Everyone liked the pumpkins seeds (even though Dale initially protested against them!) but you really cannot eat too many of them. Kya liked to just suck on them and then spit them out. Autumn and I thought they tasted a bit like popcorn.

While it probably sounds cheap, here's a tip...pumpkins are only $2 after Halloween instead of $6 before Halloween. My children have never carved a pumpkin before, have no idea it's associated with a particular day of the year and simply enjoyed the event!

One night after dinner, while still in their high chairs, the babies started having a terrible tantrum. Both were screaming, crying, kicking and thrashing. I got the camera, pointed it at them and as soon as they saw the red light on the camera they would ham-up for it! As soon as the flash was gone, they were back to having a tantrum. They kept doing this over and over. In between each of the below photos, the babies were literally having a tantrum.

Monday, November 3, 2008

On Autumn's birthday, beginning of October, I posted pictures of our family party. It has taken me a long time to post pictures from her friends-party. Finally, here they are! She had SO much fun. It's been a month and she still talks about it. She invited her closest friends and somehow there was 17 of them...all from families we adore. We were happy to celebrate her birthday with each of these families, children & parents alike. Thank you each for coming and making her day so very special.

It's was a Spiderman theme. We had scavenger hunt, water balloon toss, pinata, presents, pizza & cake. We always have a few friends that hang back and chill out for the rest of the day, those friends all went swimming. And we ended our night with a family dinner at Bob Evans (at about 9pm, the party was finally over and Autumn was one happy 5 year old!).

About Me

We witness a miracle every time a child enters into life. But those who make their journey home across time & miles, growing within the hearts of those who wait to love them, are carried on the wings of destiny and placed among us by God's very own hands." - Kristi Larson